Union Terrace Soil Passes Test

State environmental specialists unearthed nothing unusual yesterday morning in the soil at Allentown's Union Terrace Park and elementary school ballfield.

Jim Dolan of the state Department of Environmental Resources (DER) said inspectors from the Bethlehem office yesterday took chemical vapor tests at five spots dug up by a city backhoe, as well as soil samples from two of the sites, where toxic chemicals reportedly had been dumped in the 1950s and 1960s.

Dolan, a waste management specialist, said the instantaneous vapor analysis showed no evidence of volatile organic chemicals, including solvents, at any of the locations. Soil analysis, however, would take more time to complete, he said.

Using a device that resembles a Geiger counter and detects vapors from various chemicals, he held the probe into holes about 10 inches deep.

"We got good background samples down into the soil and all showed up clean," he said yesterday afternoon.

Soil as well as vapor tests were taken on city park property near two sites of the former Enamelstrip Corp., a metal stripping and painting company which routinely dumped toxic chemicals on its grounds and into the Cedar Creek before closing in 1963, according to two former employees.

Also tested for chemical vapors was an area along the bank of the Cedar Creek, the park's field hockey field and the school district's baseball field across from Union Terrace School.

City health officials hailed the vapor test results as significant, particularly because of the accounts of dumping 23 years ago at the defunct Enamelstrip company.

"I feel a lot better," Health Director Gary Gurian commented after the environmental inspection. "I was concerned we would find something potentially harmful to the public in the park, but based on the results of the tests today, we have a better indication that the park is safe.

"We found nothing toxic or potentially harmful in the surface soil that children might ingest," Gurian said, basing his comments on the vapor analyses.

Results of yesterday's soil samples were expected within the next two weeks, they said.

In addition, final written results of water tests taken from the school and park during the past two weeks were expected next week, according to Morgan and Gurian.

A second water sample was taken from the elementary school's drinking fountain early this week, DER officials told The Morning Call, because of an abnormal reading. Neither DER nor the Health Bureau would disclose what was found in the drinking water sample because the results were inconclusive and possibly due to a laboratory or testing error.

Gurian said environmental testing would continue as part of an investigation of alleged Enamelstrip dumping activities. Toward that end, the Health Bureau had scheduled interviews with employees of the defunct metal stripping company for detailed information of what went on.

City health officials said they would schedule a public meeting when all environmental tests had been completed. DER officials would report and interpret the results at that meeting.